“…In 2023, the Shorts took over the property now known as Stone River Glen, a 51-acre retreat tucked into the lush folds of the West Elk Mountains. For decades, the site served as Camp IdRaHaJe, a Christian youth camp located just off Kebler Pass with cabins, a dining hall, chapel, and several other outbuildings. But when Lori and Stuart arrived, what they found wasn’t just an old camp—it was a relic of community and memory waiting to bloom again.

The place needed a good deal of TLC, but that didn’t scare them one bit. The couple has spent years running weddings and events out of a historic building in Hillside, Colorado, while Stuart, a skilled builder, had the know-how to bring old buildings back from the brink. They rolled up their sleeves and got to work—clearing brush, repairing paths, uncovering long-forgotten benches, and slowly piecing the property back together.

Now, just two years later, Stone River Glen is open for weddings, reunions, retreats, and all manner of special gatherings. The setting is cinematic: towering spruce and aspen, the sound of the creek running through the meadow – which is loaded with trout by the way, and a distant view of the Ragged Mountain Range that makes everything feel timeless. It’s rustic without the rough, remote but easily accessible—a sweet spot for couples who dream of mountain magic without losing their guests along the way…

Stone River Glen may be new in name, but the site has an old soul. That’s partly because of the care with which Lori and Stuart have taken with every step—restoring, not replacing; enhancing, not overbuilding. And partly because you can sense, just walking the trails or peeking into the chapel, that this land has hosted generations of joy before and is ready to do so again.

If you’re looking for a place that blends wild beauty with warmth and intention, where your wedding playlist might mix with birdsong and your ceremony could end in a creekside champagne toast under the alpine glow of a Western Colorado sunset – Stone River Glen is well worth the short drive up Kebler Pass.”

- Stu Carlson, High Country Spotlight